New DOJ Report: 1-in-5 Federal Prisoners are Illegal Aliens

A new Department of Justice report released Thursday reveals 20 percent of federally incarcerated individuals in the United States are illegal aliens, costing taxpayers $1.5 million per day. Many of these individuals committed serious and violent crimes, in additional to entering the country illegally.

A total of 57,820 known or suspected aliens were in in DOJ custody at the end of FY 2018 Q1, including 38,132 persons in BOP custody and 19,688 in USMS custody. Of this total, 42,284 people had been confirmed by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to be aliens (i.e., non-citizens and non-nationals), while 15,536 aliens were still under investigation by ICE to determine alienage and/or removability.

Among the 42,284 confirmed aliens, 39,413 people (93 percent) were unlawfully present. These numbers include a 62 percent unlawful rate among 38,132 known or suspected aliens in BOP custody and a 78 percent unlawful rate among 19,688 confirmed aliens in USMS custody.

Approximately 16,233 aliens in USMS custody required housing in state, local, and private facilities, which cost $1,458,372.72 a day.

Here's a breakdown of the crimes fro Texas alone between 2011 and 2018. The report notes, "These data do not account for all aliens in the Texas criminal justice system, as they are limited to criminal alien arrestees who have had prior interaction with DHS resulting in the collection of their fingerprints."

"The illegal immigrant crime rate in this country should be zero," Attorney General Sessions released in a statement. "Every crime committed by an illegal alien is, by definition, a crime that should have been prevented. It is outrageous that tens of thousands of Americans are dying every year because of the drugs and violence brought over our borders illegally and that taxpayers have been forced, year after year, to pay millions of dollars to incarcerate tens of thousands of illegal aliens. That is another reason why the Department of Justice under President Trump's leadership has instituted a zero tolerance policy for illegal entry on our Southwest border. Today's report is yet another reminder that we must continue this policy and help fulfill President Trump's goals of restoring lawfulness to our immigration system and ensure that immigration serves the good of this country."